Lost Promise
by okapiangel
Summary: Second chapter up An ancient promise, lost for centuries holds the key to the Al Bhed's survival. And now its up to Rikku to find it. Please R&R, they inspire me...
1. Chapter 1

**Lost Promise**

_By Okapiangel_

_A/N: Takes place about three years after the end of FFX2. This is just the first chapter – I've actually decided to write an epic! Here's hoping that it gets done  As always, feel free to comment (actually, I love them – they inspire me to keep writing) and if you have any questions go ahead and ask, I usually manage to reply _

_Disclaimer: Don't own them._

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"Mmmm… Just a little more sunscreen – I really don't want to get burned…" It was shameless, really, and I knew it. But how often was I able to get a nice, strong, handsome, tanned man willing to meet my every demand. Not that I ever have many demands. And as far as demands go, mine are hardly demanding. Just a little sunscreen, some harmless flirting, lose the shirt and dote upon me. Not too much to ask really. After all, this was my vacation – and Lord knows I deserved one after three years of helping Pops rebuild Home. We were making progress – there was beginning to be a skeleton of the city we had lost. And with all the sandstorms, and the endless meetings with the Machine Faction (I promise I'll explain all of it later) I was definitely way overdue for the rest and relaxation I was getting this week. This vacation was unquestionably making it onto my top ten vacations of all time.

"Just a little lower, that's where I always manage to burn." I grinned as he moved his hands lower on my back. He really had such nice hands – large and calloused – but definitely gentle. You could tell he worked with his hands often. They had such raw power but you could feel how he constantly kept it under control. I absolutely loved this man – he positively was my type: strong, confident, and skilled. I could tell that this wasn't the first time he'd done this. His hand grazed the top of my butt and it sent tingles straight up my spine. Had I been my cousin, I would have been shocked – appalled even – but I wasn't her. Instead, I was exhilarated. When we finally got Home rebuilt, I was seeing to it personally that this guy got hired. I never put much stock in being the "leader of the Al Bhed's daughter," but if it got me a personal cabana boy then I was definitely going to pull rank.

"I think you're nearly there…" Ok, it was bad. It was actually beyond bad. Pops would KILL me. Brother would KILL him (The cabana boy – not Pops. Though come to think of it, I wouldn't put it past him to kill Pops either. They haven't been on good terms lately.) But let's get back to me. Honestly, how many vacation flings does a girl have anyhow? Not many when Cid's her dad, I'll tell you that. Someone always knows who I am and it gets back to him, and then it becomes a HUGE useless lecture about how I can't be viewed as a slut when I'm going to be leader someday. Then I argue that Brother is older than I am and that he should be leader and Pops usually tells me, "Over my dead body!" And it's really no use arguing that when its time to pick a new leader that he'll probably be dead anyhow. So yeah. No flings for Rikku when she gets her vacation. But this time I'm having one. No one is going to spoil this fling for me. I want the kind that you look back on and remember when you're old and grey and saggy – not that I EVER am becoming old and grey and saggy; especially because saggy is just beyond gross.

But this guy was earning definite brownie points. Besides giving the world's best massage, he was whispering something in my ear. I must have looked confused, because he whispered it again, his voice low and sexy. First thing on my "To Do List": find out this guy's name and reserve him for the rest of the week.

"I think the front of you might need some sunscreen…" In one smooth motion I was lying on my back and staring at his gorgeous face.

…That was coming closer to mine…

…Just like in the movies, my eyes closed automatically…

…Oh Lord…I've died and gone to the farplane…

And as his lips met mine, I couldn't help but think how … grainy he was. And come to think of it, when did it start to rain?

I opened an eye warily, and didn't find myself staring at the man of my dreams, but rather at a sopping wet toddler. Who was sprinkling sand on me – and some of it got into my eye.

"Ugh!" I sat up, wishing I could go back to sleep and back to my dream man as I hunted half blindly for any kind of water to wash the sand out of my eye. "It would have to be a dream…" I muttered as my eye began to water. I wondered at whoever decided to bring a toddler to the beach anyhow. Certainly wasn't my idea! As I finally found water and proceeded to dump it on my face, I couldn't believe my ears – the little rat was laughing at me!

"What's so funny Runt? Don't think I won't beat you to a pulp." But somehow the vision of an angry blonde woman who was cleaning out her eye in desperate hopes of regaining vision didn't strike the proper fear into a three-and-a-half year old. Instead, he began to laugh harder and jump in the sand, "Funny Auntie! Auntie Rikku dancing!"

I blinked, the sand finally done tormenting me. Who could really get mad at the kid? He was adorable, still baby chubby, with dimples in both cheeks and knees. And such a shock of red hair – he really did look like his father. But he had his mother's complexion. Lulu, who I'm sure had heard the commotion earlier but felt it was more entertaining to watch as a three-year-old single handedly brought a famed guardian and Gullwing to her knees (remind me to thank her later), finally chose this time to swoop down on her son. "Vidina, leave your Aunt Rikku alone. You know better than to throw sand on people," though her voice was soft, Lulu was firm, and her son had already learned not to mess with Mama. Daddy was fine, but Mama meant business.

What can I say? I took pity on the kid. "Don't worry about it Lulu. I'll just feed him to the whales." I picked up the sandy, red-headed mess and headed towards the ocean. This of course had the desired effect and the kid began to shriek in my arms, though whether it was terror or fun I haven't decided. Yuna told me she thought it was terror, but I maintain the kid knew I was teasing. But even if he didn't, next time I'll be able to get a nap at the beach.

That's how I was spending my vacation. Not on some secluded island with the man of my dreams, but on Besaid with my extended family. Wakka and Lulu were busy welcoming their second child into the world – a little girl, this time with her mother's hair and her father's complexion. She was barely a week old, which was the cause of the vacation in the first place. Yuna was there too, she moved back to Besaid with Tidus shortly after their wedding last year. It was such a huge affair, and since Yuna's really been a such a private person her whole life, we all knew that it was just a matter of time before she went home. They've been like lovebirds since he came back (don't get me started on HOW he came back, it's really too long of a story, and I've told it too many times before.) But now they were worse – though it really became comical after awhile. Paine and I actually created a drinking game based off them – everyone takes a shot every time they do something puketastic. And believe me; they do it often enough, though they really are trying to be better about it. But now they're expecting their first child! Yuna's about three months along. I can hardly believe that I'm going to be an actual aunt! Paine was supposed to come to Besaid with me, but Baralai called her last minute, saying he needed her to be there for something or another; I wasn't really paying attention when Yuna told me. Who would have believed that Paine and Baralai would hook up? Ok… we all did…

So in a nutshell, that's where we're all at in the world. Everyone is hooking up and settling down. Well, everyone but me anyhow. But don't go feeling sorry for me – I don't want to hook up. Contrary to my recent dream, I am happy being single. I'm not tied down to anyone, I'm free to throw myself one hundred percent into what I'm doing and I don't have anyone to watch out for. And with all the work I'm doing trying to get Home rebuilt, there's really no time to feel lonely. My life is nearly perfect, and I'm happy. And that's really all you can ask for in life.

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So, now that I've bored you with my rambling, lets continue where we left off. I was standing knee deep in the ocean and had a sopping wet, shrieking toddler in my arms. I know what you're thinking – life doesn't get much better than this. On the contrary – you don't know what good friends I am with fate.

Those of you who can sense the sarcasm – ten respect points to you.

Yes – I stole Paine's respect points. I had to! Too many people were loosing them. So she takes them away, and I give them out, and every time she catches me, I loose about ten points. But I'm so far in the negative that it doesn't matter anymore.

Anyhow, where was I? Oh yeah! Fate was about to give me a giant bite on the bum.

So to interrupt this wonderful bonding moment Vidina and I were having, out comes Tidus waving his arms like an idiot. Though he really is a charming idiot whom my cousin is happily married to – and consequently I'm related to. But that's ok, because Brother is my, well, brother, so I'm used to being related to an idiot. Anyways, Tidus comes out, calling to us (at least I thought it was for all of us, since he and Wakka were grilling chocobo for dinner). But in actuality, he was waving at me.

"Rikku! You've got a call on the CommSphere!" If I looked confused, its because I couldn't hear him over the runt.

"Ssh kid… Come on, lets go back to Mama. You can tell her how Auntie Rikku tried to kill you this time." I waded back in and handed off Vidina.

"What's up Tidus?"

"Cid's on the CommSphere for you." Tidus didn't look to happy, and I'm sure I didn't either. I had specifically told Pops NOT to call me, because I was on VACATION. I groaned, "Tell him I died." Tidus laughed, "I already tried that. He won't listen. Says its something important about Home." Well, that did it. I had to go talk to Pops now.

My mind raced as I ran to Tidus and Yuna's home. What in Spira could have happened? I'd only been gone for three days! There was no way that anything terrible could have happened in just THREE days. Brother was still out with Buddy doing repairs on the Celsius. They told me that they had planned to be out for a week remodeling. And with Brother out of the way things usually ran a heck of a lot smoother. Upon entering the house I saw the blue glow of the sphere, and kneeled down beside it.

"What's up Pops? I told you I'm on vacation!"

I really should have known that something was wrong. Pops looked worried. And worried is different from his usual angry look – trust me, you learn to read Pops' moods when you're his daughter. Actually, sitting there looking at him, I realized just how old he was beginning to look. He wasn't really all that old either -- it must have been the stress of trying to lead a group of people and rebuild their city at the same time. Not too many people could have handled it. Pops was the rarity.

His voice was strained as he answered, "Rikku, you need to come here right away. Home's been destroyed."


	2. Chapter 2

**Lost Promise**  
**Chapter 2**

By: okapiangel

_Disclaimer: I don't own it._

_Author's Note: I swear I'm alive! Just busy. This update isn't everything I wanted to put down, its actually only about half of it. But I think it explains a bit more about what's going on in everyone's lives. Its still setup, I'm sorry. Next chapter is delving more into the story, but no promises on how soon I can get it up. Hope you enjoy!_

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"Rikku, you need to come here right away. Home's been destroyed."

Ever notice how when you're not expecting things to happen, life really lets you have it? I mean, POW, right in the kisser! Life enjoys blindsiding me with things like that – nothing is ever what I thought it would be. And nothing EVER ends the way I thought it would. For example, five years ago I was fifteen and living every Al Bhed's fantasy when I was working on that salvage ship. Becoming my cousin's guardian, debunking a major religion, defeating Sin and helping save Spira certainly was not on my list to things "To Do." I was perfectly content excavating machina from the ocean floor and uncovering secrets of a past long forgotten by the rest of the world. Seriously, what more could a girl ask for? How was I supposed to know that the gorgeous stranger we rescued from Baaj Temple was a key player in a puzzle much bigger than any of us anticipated?

But I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. No, I'm not big on hokey religions – but of a much larger order of the universe. Destiny controls all our paths, and all we can do is hope to keep up. Looking back on the last five years, I realized that my turning point occurred on the day Sin attacked the salvage ship. It wasn't a random attack – I'm sure Sin, Jecht, knew that his son was on the ship with us. He wanted his son to end up in Besaid, because I'm sure he knew that Yuna was going to become a guardian. And I'm sure he knew that his son would be the one to destroy him.

Hindsight is such a remarkable thing. It really allows people to see the reasons for the crap life throws at them. I mean, if that hadn't happened then Yuna and Tidus wouldn't have gotten together, and the Al Bhed would still be the most hated people in Spira. Not that we haven't moved too much farther up on the list. It's just that most people hate other people just a little more than they hate us. It takes a long time to overcome centuries of distrust and dislike. I suppose that lots of people (Not me though – EVER) believe its Yevon watching out for them. It's like the whole pilgrimage never happened. Of course they recognize that Yuna destroyed Sin and brought the eternal calm, but the whole bit about Yevon being a whacked out religion they choose to ignore. Not that I ever held any stock in that religion at all. They ignore the fact that Yevon was really just an over powerful, corrupted summoner who still thought that there was a war going on with Bevelle. Sort of. That's my over simplified version of the whole thing. The other version is way too long and complicated and I really am tired of telling it to people.

But the whole point is that the world is safe for people now, even if they still insist on fighting over petty crap. Hmm… maybe Yunie should give another concert… It worked ok the last time she gave one. Of course, her channeling Lenne could have helped her concert's message a little bit. There's something about star-crossed lovers dying tragically that really speaks to people. Still, the world is safe, no one is trying to destroy the world, and the Al Bhed are all working together to get Home rebuilt.

Yeah right. The Al Bhed are at each other's throats over this whole Home issue. And now that its been destroyed, who knows what's going to happen. I admit it, I wasn't expecting Pops to drop a bomb like that, and my reaction wasn't the most brilliant thing I've ever said.

"Hunh? Again?" Boy, I was sounding like Brother. After we destroyed Vegnagun, Shinra showed us some sphere's he'd recorded during our trip. And I wasn't impressed with the way I acted. So over the last three years I've been working especially hard at growing up and becoming the kind of person that I've always envisioned myself becoming. Although I still burst out with the occasional, 'Poopie!' and right now was definitely a 'Poopie!' moment. But I regained my composure – after all, I am the older, more mature Rikku. I am, although unwillingly, the next in line to lead my people. And I was –

Supposedly, I was supposed to know where Pops was. I knew that, since Home was destroyed, he wasn't there. (See? That's called deductive reasoning, and is one of the many skills I've been perfecting recently.) "Pops? Where is 'here?'" Obviously my deductive reasoning needed to be honed. Looking back on it now, it was obvious where he was. See, even though Home was destroyed, and that alone would put Pops in a bad mood, it wouldn't make him look like he'd been constipated for a month. There were only two people who were capable of giving Pops that expression – and since I hadn't heard a peep out of Brother, that only left…

"Djose." Well… Poopie. I had been clinging to hope that he wasn't there. But no… Pops continued to scowl into the commsphere, "Damn Machine Faction pulled us all out of the storm before anyone could get hurt." Ouch. That had to hurt Pops' pride – I knew how much he'd hate to be rescued by, well _anyone_ really, but especially by someone he hates. I remembered that time three years ago when Yunie, Paine and I saved Pops' butt in the Thunder Plains. He'd been a pain then, and I'm sure he was being a bigger pain now. But, I would be too. After all the grief the Machine Faction has put us through – I bit my lip in frustration.

"Pops, I can't go to Djose!" I could control this – after all, I was still Pops' little girl – even if I was twenty. "Why don't you guys tune me in via commsphere?" Apparently Pops didn't take to that idea too well. Not that I really blamed him, I'd kill someone if I had to be stuck in Djose by myself. So, it was time for plan B, "You guys can come to Besaid! We can meet here – I'm sure Yuna –"

"Yuna has dealt with enough of our problems. We're keeping this one strictly among ourselves." Well, crap. When Pops puts his foot down, there's really no arguing with him. But I wasn't going down without a fight – after all, Pops pales in comparison to both Sin and Vegnagun. "Luca! We can meet in Luca then – it'll take me less time to get to Luca, and we'll get there around the same time!" I scrunched up my face as I racked my brain for more reasons why we should meet in Luca – the scrunching's a nasty habit from when I was a child. "And… ummm… Uncle Rin! I'm sure he'd want to be at the meeting, and I'm positive he'd host it, especially seeing as he just lost one of his biggest clients in the storm. …Actually, two of his biggest clients – the Machine Faction had to bail too." I waited for Pops to shoot down my idea. I waited for the sigh that meant, 'Rikku, what am I going to do with you and how do you ever expect to be leader one day?' What I didn't expect was Pops nearly cracking a smile. See, the only time I've ever seen Pops smile after Mama died was when Yunie defeated Sin and managed to stay alive. So I'm pretty sure I did something impressive just then – I just don't know exactly what it was. But really, all I cared about was that I didn't have to drag my buns all the way to Djose. And hey – if Pops was willing to haul ourselves over to Luca just to argue about the future of the Al Bhed, it was fine with me. At least, when Pops began threatening to kill people Uncle Rin would be there to help me restrain him. Oh! Just to clarify, Rin's not technically my uncle, but he and Pops are super close, and I've been calling him my uncle since before I can remember. Of course, that's not really relevant, but I just thought someone might like to know.

"Right Pops, I'll meet you in Luca tomorrow." Boy, Uncle Rin was going to love us showing up on his doorstep without any warning. But hey – that's where I play up 'favorite niece' and everything blows over without too much trouble. I reached to disconnect the commsphere, and had nearly done so when I heard the one voice I'd been dreading. Things were about to get ugly, and I didn't want any part of it.

However, neutrality was not a luxury I was allowed.

"Is that her? When's she coming? We've got a lot to talk about before I let my guys get back to digging in the Sanubian."

Did he have to just assume I would run to Djose? Honestly, he really knew how to drive me completely nuts. But leave it to good old Pops to handle the situation with delicacy and diplomacy.

"Will you shut your pothole for one god dammed minute! She's refusing to come to Djose – not that I blame her! This is the last place I'd want to go either, but you didn't leave me with much choice did you! Just drag us away from Home and dump us in your damned temple!" I had to hand it to Pops; I was impressed with his level of control. But then of course, in their eternal game to one up each other, Gippal had to add his opinion. "Didn't give you a choice? Excuse me Cid – would you like us to dump you back in Spira's sandbox and ask if you'd rather escape on our airships or get squashed by the ton of sand that was hurling in your direction!"

I knew this wasn't going to end anytime soon, so I cleared my throat – loudly. It didn't do any good. So I shouted into the commsphere, "Luca! Tomorrow!" Then I disconnected the sphere, and left the room, grumbling as I pushed past a worried Tidus. Not that I meant to, I really didn't see him walking up as I was leaving. Fact is I was fighting a killer migraine caused by those two babies I'd just been talking to.

Maybe I should explain about Pops and Gippal. See, they've never exactly seen eye to eye, in fact ever since I could remember they've hated each other. When we were kids (Gippal, Brother and I – not Pops) Pops didn't like Gippal and Brother playing together because Gippal beat up Brother once or twice. Not that Brother didn't deserve it; he shouldn't have threatened to give Gippal a pounding if he couldn't back up his threats. Hell – Brother threatened to give _me_ a pounding once and couldn't back that up either! Frankly I think Pops just over reacted because even though he and Brother aren't on the best terms (and really, I can't even think of a time when they have been) Gippal wounded his pride. Pops is really like a caged lion, ready to pounce at anything, and full of pride. And Gippal has constantly wounded his pride over the years.

Like the time one of Pops' Al Bhed council members caught me and Gippal in a broom closet in a rather, uh, compromising situation. To be fair, it wasn't exactly Gippal's fault – but did Pops listen? Does he ever? Granted I was the one who pulled Gippal in with me – it was meant as a joke! Don't even ask me what I was thinking; because I'm of the firm opinion that thirteen year old girls don't have brains. With all the giggles and hormones there's simply no room left. But that's the day I discovered that Gippal is slightly claustrophobic – a fact that few people know. He can work inside machina no problem; because he knows he can get back out. But when the door to the broom closet locked, he panicked. And while I was trying to comfort him, some old council member discovered us, marched us straight to Pops and told him he should control his daughter before she ruins his family name. As if I could ruin it! That's Brother's job.

But Pops' pride was injured and Gippal got the brunt of it. The weirdest part was he simply accepted it. Like Pops' opinion didn't matter to him anymore.

And when Pops was trying to decide how to handle the threat of Sin, he and Gippal bumped heads yet again. Pops had decided that by salvaging machina, we might be able to find a weapon capable of destroying Sin. Gippal was a supporter of the more direct approach and thought Pops was just running scared. And one day in the middle of a council meeting (don't ask how he got in, I've never figured that one out) he called Pops a coward. Then he left while Pops was still sputtering with anger, packed his things and left for the Crimson Squad without so much as a goodbye to anyone.

And if you thought that Gippal had gotten better with age, think again. He's become the biggest headache ever. I can't tell you how many meetings he and Pops have had that I've needed to supervise. The problem is that Gippal is still scavenging for machina in the Sanubian desert, and Pops is rebuilding Home. And even though the desert is HUGE, these two have decided to fight over a tiny quarter of it. Pops wants to put Home where Gippal is digging, and Gippal feels his digging is more important than Home.

So if you thought that I was looking forward to my trip to Luca, think again. Battling Sin and Vegnagun together with LeBlanc as my only ally would be more pleasurable.


End file.
